Child Welfare Course Materials
Expected Child Welfare Content Areas & Model Syllabi
This section contains information related to the Child Welfare Course that all BCWEP students are required to take.
Expected Child Welfare Content Areas for BCWEP Child Welfare Courses (can be downloaded HERE)
Most important are the 鈥淓xpected Content Areas for BCWEP Consortium Child Welfare Courses.鈥 These content areas must be in the child welfare courses offered at each of our social work programs. The newly developed Work Readiness Training for our students has been designed with the understanding that our students have received or are receiving this material in their university child welfare course:
- Overview of the Child Welfare System
- Overview of the History of Child Welfare, including the legal base of practice: Major Federal and NJ Legislation, including Titles 9 and 30
- Mandatory Reporting laws and procedures 鈥 Federal and State specific
- Defining child abuse and neglect: neglect, physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse
- Case Practice Model of Child Protection, including reporting, assessing risk and safety, decision making, and the integrating of protective authority with casework practice
- Laws, Procedures and Court Interventions with Children, Youth and Families
- Family Preservation Services, including Kinship Care
- Foster Care
- Adoption
- Prevention - Protective and Risk factors
- New Jersey鈥檚 public child welfare system, its historical development, current transformation efforts, and the latest report from the federal court appointed monitor (7-19-17)
- Social Context of Child Welfare including:
- Poverty
- Cultural competence
- Educational System
- Health, Mental Health, and Substance Abuse
- Domestic Violence
- Homelessness and housing insecurity
- Juvenile Justice System and Child Welfare
- Values and Philosophies in Child Welfare Practice
- The Child Welfare Professional 鈥 A Day in the Life of a Protective Service Worker
- Caseload Management
- Secondary Trauma
- Recognizing biases, individual and systemic
- Documentation
- Worker Safety
Model Syllabi and Student Resources
This section provides two model syllabi for the child welfare courses taught at BCWEP colleges and universities. Consortium members may adopt or adapt either for their use. We recognize there are unique requirements for syllabi at the different social work programs, and individual instructors have their own preferences for style and content. What we provide in the models offered is for your use and consideration. We have also included many of the resources cited for use in the syllabi.
Model Syllabi
Student Resources
- Unites States Children's Bureau: Child Abuse and Neglect User Manuals
- Child Protective Services: A Guide for Caseworkers (Revised 2018)
- A Coordinated Response to Child Abuse and Neglect: The Foundation for Practice
- Child Neglect: A Guide for Prevention, Assessment, and Intervention
- Child Protection in Families Experiencing Domestic Violence (Revised 2018)
- Protecting Children in Families Affected by Substance Use Disorders
- Community Partnerships: Improving the Response to Child Maltreatment
- The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children
- Working with the Courts in Child Protection
- Recommended Readings
- What is Child Abuse and Neglect? Recognizing the Signs and Symptoms
- How the Child Welfare System Works
- Acts of Omission: An Overview of Child Neglect
- Working with the Courts in Child Protection
- Reunification: Bringing Your Children Home from Foster Care
- Long Term Consequences of Child Abuse and Neglect
- The Importance of Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children
- Preventing Child Abuse and Neglect
- Forensic Interviewing: A Primer for Child Welfare Professionals
- Additional Resources
- National Health Statistics Report on Adults Who Had Been in Foster Care - January 2020
- Foster Care Statistics News Article - 2020
- Kinship Diversion Information - 2019
- 2019 Report on Adverse Childhood Experiences in New Jersey
- 2018 Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) Report
- 2018 Prevention Resource Guide
- Providing Adoption Support and Preservation Services - 2018
- Children's Bureau 2017 Report on Child Maltreatment
- Summary of Findings: Children's Bureau 2017 Report on Child Maltreatment
- Child Maltreatment - 2016
- Child Abuse and Neglect Fatalities 2014: Statistics and Interventions
- Definitions of Child Abuse and Neglect: State Statutes
- Providing Adoption Support and Preservation Services
- Mandatory Reporters of Child Abuse and Neglect
- Working With Children and Youth with Complex Clinical Needs
- Considerations for LGBTQ Children and Youth in Foster Care
- Supporting Transgender Children and Youth in the Court System
- Identifying Minors Exploited Through Sex Trafficking
- Protective Capacities and Protective Factors
- Promoting Safe and Stable Families
- Working With Young Fathers: Tips From the Field
- Resources to Support Fathers
- When Your Child is in Foster Care: A Guide for Parents
- School Stability for Children in Resource Home Care
- Child Maltreatment Prevention: Past, Present, and Future
- About CAPTA: A Legislative History